All Bark, No Bite: Leonardo DiCaprio Defends The Wolf of Wall Street

The never ending moral tug-of-war is in full swing at the box office this holiday season over the newest Martin Scorsese pic, The Wolf of Wall Street. Some theater goers have given high marks for the film, while others in the crowd have turned their heads away, fearing the lifestyle the film’s protagonist portrays as an acceptable one. The three-hour feature takes a detailed look into American greed and tells the story of convicted stock market manipulator, Jordan Belfort.

Oscar nominated actor Leonardo DiCaprio portrays Belfort, and has since gone on to defend the passion project in a Q&A with Variety. “I hope people understand we’re not condoning this behavior, that we’re indicting it. The book was a cautionary tale, and if you sit through the film, you’ll realize what we’re saying about these people and this world, because it’s an intoxicating one.”

DiCaprio goes further by saying that those who are under the impression that the film is condoning such bad behavior, may be missing its true message. “People — no matter what their attitude is after seeing the film — should understand this is a film that’s outside the box and is very difficult to get done in this day and age; it almost never happens. Thank god there are people who have taste for experimental filmmaking at this level and who really want to endorse this type of film because if it weren’t for them, we wouldn’t see any types of films like this.”

DiCaprio praised director Martin Scorsese for making the film a reality, films like this that are both, as the actor says,“vital and talked about, and have an element of controversy about them.” Along with The Wolf of Wall Street, DiCaprio has teamed with Scorsese on The Aviator, which was another passion project.